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N.D. native arrested in Louisiana, charged with parental abduction

DICKINSON, N.D. -- A New England, N.D., native was recently arrested on suspicion of felony parental abduction of his 2-year-old daughter, according to authorities in Louisiana.

Jesse J. Rebel, 32, was picked up last month after a traffic stop in Mansfield, La., according to DeSoto Parish Sheriff Rodney Arbuckle. An employee at the DeSoto Parish Jail said Rebel remained in custody as of early Thursday afternoon, though he is awaiting extradition to California, where he has been charged.

Shae Rebel, 2, was reported missing in November by her mother and California resident Brandi Rebel. She was found safe and, according to Arbuckle, placed in the care of the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services.

“The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children did have the case of Shae Rebel, who was a missing child,” NCMEC spokeswoman Angeline Hartmann stated in an email to The Dickinson Press. “She has since been recovered and the family has requested that her case details be kept private.”

Arbuckle said Jesse Rebel — driving an RV at the time — was pulled over Jan. 29 for a traffic stop when a parish deputy discovered a warrant for Rebel’s arrest had been issued by the Santa Clarita Valley (Calif.) Sheriff’s Station. He was arrested without incident.

Dave Campbell, a detective with the sheriff’s station, said Thursday that Rebel’s charges carry a sentence of two to four years in county jail. Campbell said the Rebels moved to California from North Dakota about a year ago and that Jesse Rebel had both North Dakota and California driver’s licenses.

Jesse Rebel graduated from New England High School in 2000, according to a school official. Shae Rebel was reported missing from her home in Castaic, Calif., and was listed for several weeks on the website of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Hartmann said.

Jesse’s mother, Michelle Rebel of New England, said Thursday that she did not know the details surrounding the case and had not seen her son or granddaughter for more than a year.

A Wisconsin native, Horwath has been covering news in the Oil Patch of North Dakota since 2012. Horwath currently serves as the senior agriculture and political reporter for The Dickinson Press and, despite the team's tendency to always let him down, remains a diehard Minnesota Vikings fan.